Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A man who is the eldest or senior member of a group.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A dean.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun Lit., a dean; the senior member of a body or group.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun obsolete A
commander in charge of ten men. - noun The
senior , oreldest male member of a group. - noun colloquial A
leading light , orexemplar of a particularpractice ormovement .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a man who is the senior member of a group
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Support
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Examples
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The rules say the oldest MEP - or "doyen" - chairs the session until a new parliament president is elected.
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Medical readers will know that the Lancet - the other "doyen" of medical journalism in the UK, is no less rabid in its abuse of Israel.
On Thursday, the Legg report will be published along with... 2009
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I believe the term for these cunning folks is "doyen," and they're just about everywhere I go in the Guggenheim, doing, well, what one expects: explaining what the art means.
Art and Architecture 2006
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I believe the term for these cunning folks is "doyen," and they're just about everywhere I go in the Guggenheim, doing, well, what one expects: explaining what the art means.
unbillable hours: 2006
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I also enjoyed your piece at 'Dark Trees about the "doyen".
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In the one, dated 1423, he is styled 'doyen' (senior inhabitant) of the village, which gave him rank next to the Mayor.
Joan of Arc Gower, Ronald Sutherland, Lord, 1845-1916 1893
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He said Mr Spence was seen as a "doyen" and that his words would carry "weight and impact".
BBC News - Home 2010
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They paid tribute to the zoo's "doyen", whose distinctive personality and "demonstrative lovemaking" had made him a favourite with the French public.
European Tribune 2009
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They paid tribute to the zoo's "doyen", whose distinctive personality and "demonstrative lovemaking" had made him a favourite with the French public.
European Tribune 2009
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You think you hold the title of "doyen" that "scoops are not given exclusively to you.
valse commented on the word doyen
also see doyenne
January 4, 2007
brtom commented on the word doyen
"(the semi-paralysed doyen of the party who had to be assisted to his seat by the aid of a powerful steam crane)"
Joyce, Ulysses, 12
January 13, 2007